Meet the Poet

Gail Thomas

Gail Thomas's new collection, Waving Back, will be coming out from Word Tech in the spring. Her other books are No Simple Wilderness: An Elegy for Swift River Valley (Haleys, 2001) and Finding the Bear (Perugia Press, 1997). Her poems have appeared in more than 30 journals and anthologies including The Beloit Poetry Journal, Calyx, Hanging Loose, The North American Review, The Chiron Review, Cider Press Review and Naugatuck River Review.Gail has received grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council and the Ludwig Vogelstein Foundation and was awarded residencies at the MacDowell Colony and Ucross. Her book, No Simple Wilderness, about the creation of the Quabbin Reservoir in the 1930’s has been taught in writing and multidisciplinary college courses. As one of the original artists for the MCC's Elder Arts Initiative, Thomas led workshops and intergenerational arts projects across the state. Originally from Pennsylvania, Thomas raised her daughters in Western Massachusetts where she has lived for more than 30 years. She is a learning specialist and teaches at Smith College. Read.